Olympian Complex

“Hello.”

The storeroom door had, a moment before, whispered open, and clicked shut. Ares couldn’t muster up the desperation nor the energy required to rush for freedom, not with them starving him like this…

“I brought you a meat pie.”

Now they tortured him with poisoned food! Would the horror never end?

“I brought one for each of us. This one’s a little bigger but it’s just the crust, I measured the filling myself.”

Ares blinked at the strange person himself. The other boy had long, brown waves of hair and brilliant violet eyes, and just a hint of bumps on his chest – concealed weapons, perhaps? With a start, his mental picture came into focus, and he felt a tad embarrassed. The girl before him was, after all, the first he’d seen in person in his life. Still, her gender was irrelevant.

“Hey. Don’t you talk?”

Her talkativeness, on the other hand, was highly annoying.

“What’s your name, kid?” she demanded of him. Always demanding, this girl was. He could tell she’d be a distraction right off the bat. Well, he wouldn’t cave to her torturous demands.

“Irrelevant.” he said, sulkily.

“Irrelevant? That’s a funny name.” Oh, how mercilessly she mocked him. Still, he would not cave to her odd interrogation – he was a soldier, far better trained and more deadly than she was.

Ares scowled at the impish girl, irritated. “It means, my name doesn’t matter.”

She scowled right back at him. “I know what it means, I got top marks in vocabulary, so there.” she said, sticking out her tongue. “Stupid boy. I bet you don’t even have a proper name.”

“I do so!” he argued, crossing his arms. “And it’s way better than your stupid name, I’ll bet.”

“Oh yeah?” She replied, crossing her own arms over those mocking bumps on her chest. “
I’m Violet.”

“Violet’s a stupid name.” he said, triumphant, before remembering his mission. “And anyway, you’re irrelevant. I’m supposed to be waiting for instructions.”

“Well I instruct you to tell me your name.” Violet must think she’s very clever, thought Ares, but really she was just a stupid girl who didn’t understand anything.

“I don’t take orders from you.” Ares closed his eyes, rolling onto his side to face away from her, his arms still crossed. This girl, Violet, was not in his briefing; therefore, she must be irrelevant.

She Was irrelevant.

She was… touching him?! One finger, in a rough poke. Ares snapped his eyes open, turning to glare at her, only to find her looming over him. He jumped a little, sitting up and pushing away from her constant presence. The girl laughed at him – Laughed! At him!

“It’s not funny.” he said, sulkily, looking away. The girl left the meat pie on the corner of the cot, turning to go.

“Fine. I’ve got more important things to do anyway.”

Ares watched her go. Somehow, when she left, the room seemed far colder and emptier than it had before she entered.

Stupid girl.